Buccaneers coach Raheem Morris says he’s heading into the season with a simple goal in mind: Be better than the Falcons, Saints and Panthers.
“What we want to do now, which is realistic, is go out and win our division,” Morris said. “That would be our goal. Once you win the division, you have a chance to qualify for the playoffs, and once you qualify for the playoffs, anything can happen. As long as I’m the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, we’re going to continue the championship search.”
Last season Morris identified winning 10 games as a goal, and it seemed like a lofty goal considering the Bucs were coming off a 3-13 season in 2009. Sure enough, the Bucs went 10-6 in 2010 -- but they missed the playoffs, which raises the question of whether 10 wins was really the right goal.
Morris, however, said people misunderstood what he meant with the 10-win goal, adding, “I know it was nice for you guys [the media], because you said I wouldn’t get there in three years.”
This year Morris’s goal isn’t something anyone will misunderstand: He wants to win the NFC South.